You Have Superpowers 

You have superpowers. ✨

I’m not even kidding.

You have two brains!

For real. Let me explain.

You have your primitive brain, and you have your prefrontal cortex.

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Brain #1: The Primitive Brain

This is the one that evolved to keep you alive. It also likes to seek pleasure and avoid pain. The primitive brain is reactive and controls the “fight or flight” response, when you get scared and run away from danger. This can be extremely helpful, but it also can act like a child. It can see pizza and think, “i want pizza!” 🍕and then, similar to a child, can start to offer you great reasons why you should have pizza even if you are not hungry. The prefrontal cortex is like a toddler with a knife. 🔪If you are in the amazon fighting a tiger, you’ll be happy to have it, but it can be a liability.

Brain #2: The Prefrontal Cortex

This is your “higher brain”. This brain is responsible for decision making. It helps you stay focused and concentrated when you are working on something challenging. This is the part of your brain that we tap into when we know we need to do something even if we aren’t “in the mood” to do it. This part of your brain is the “responsible adult”. The prefrontal cortex is also what differentiates you from other animals. 🐒 We have the wonderful ability to make careful decisions in advance with our best interest in mind. Animals cannot do this. The prefrontal cortex will always have your best long-term interest in mind.

Most of us are not aware that these two brains exist, so we bounce between the two, without knowing. Becoming aware of how and when to tap into each is our superpower. ✨

Why does any of this matter to you and your weight loss journey?

Because your primitive brain will try to derail you from achieving your weight loss goal. Your primitive brain will see pizza and tell you to reach for a slice, and start giving you lots of very compelling reasons for why you should do it. 🍕🍕🍕

We are not (yet) robots. We have a lot of THOUGHTS floating around in our brain. And when it comes to losing weight, we have plenty of thoughts over what we should be eating, when, and why. Some of these thoughts are conflicting. 😫 When you have an urge to eat when you are not hungry, you can recognize this as your primitive brain attempting to start a negotiation with your prefrontal cortex. It’s up to you whether you choose to engage with it, or you can lovingly take the knife out of the toddler’s hand and calmly walk away. 😎

You have the power to allow your prefrontal cortex to be in charge! 💪

A few months ago, my son and a friend drew the superhero pictured. Little did they know that this superhero exists inside all of us. They depicted this “Two Brain” character to be an evil villain, but we all have choice how we use our superpowers.

How will YOU use your Superpowers? ✨